Screeding is the act of striking off freshly placed concrete with a straight edge to a set or desired elevation while the concrete is still in a plastic state. As the straight edge is pulled across the top of the concrete, excess concrete is pulled out of the way to make a level surface, and places that are too low have concrete added to them until the grade is uniform. Once a bay or strip of the concrete slab is screeded, the adjacent bay or strip is poured and the grade for the newly poured concrete may be based, in part, on the previously completed bay or strip.
In some instances, one or more fixed height rails or beams may be used as a frame or fixed height screed guide in the screeding process. These rails may be supported using screed hooks that slide over stakes or rebar. Currently, screed hooks are often made of metal and have a set screw extending from the body opposite the hook arm. The set screw is tightened using a handheld tool to set the height of the hook with respect to the stake and the surface in which the stake is placed.